SPEAKER_00 0:00

Here comes a sign do do. Here comes a sign that say it's alright.

SPEAKER_02 0:19

So I'd like to just jump right into it. Tell us just a little bit about who you are, where you're from, and then you can get right into your story.

SPEAKER_04 0:27

Yeah, so I'm Trenton Bass. I am from Hills, Minnesota. I am 21 years old currently. Um I'm a senior at SDSU going for mechanical engineering, and I will graduate this May, May 7th.

SPEAKER_01 0:42

Um I have I'm not gonna hold the SDSU thing against you.

SPEAKER_04 0:45

That's all right.

SPEAKER_02 0:45

He's USD all the way.

SPEAKER_04 0:48

Uh I have two older brothers, Colton and Dalton, uh a sister-in-law, Steph, a niece, Madeline, and a future sister-in-law, Emily. Um yeah, I mean, not a whole lot exciting going on Hills, so I really can't say much there.

SPEAKER_02 1:05

I do have to give a shout-out to your mom and dad. So Missy and Jeff Bass are your parents, which we are uh I have the privilege of being dear friends with your mother, who is an angel. So um tell us a little bit about that day, Trenton.

SPEAKER_04 1:20

Yeah, so I was uh injured um my senior year of high school. Uh it was the second football game of the season. I actually went to four days of high school in the first semester. Um but yeah, so it was the second game, one of our biggest rivals. Uh it was in a way game up in Mountain Lake, Minnesota. Um kind of a back and forth game the whole time. You know, it was the fourth quarter, about a minute and a half left. Uh, they were kind of driving on us. We were up a touchdown. Um and uh it was 28-20, I think. And yeah, they were driving on us. I think they were at like the 30-yard line or so. I kind of played D back, linebacker, and so I was on uh playing cornerback at this at this time, and uh the uh the play came my way. It was a run. I got around my blocker and was running kind of straight at the line, so right towards their sideline, kind of away from ours, and he was going towards the end zone, and I kind of dove straight forward and he came from the side and kind of kneed the side of my head, which eventually or ended up breaking my C5, C6 vertebrae. Um from there uh kind of felt like as soon as I made contact with his leg, like as soon as I touched him, I was like laying on the ground. And that was the first thing that I kind of noticed was weird because you know, normally you feel the the fall on the ground or like the impact, and I didn't feel any of that until that was the worst the first thing that felt pretty weird. Um and then you know, I just wasn't getting up. I didn't really think anything of it, I just was kind of laying there. Um yeah, it was it was just something I really can't explain. I was not panicked in any way. I was just kind of laying there. I had a couple teammates come up to me, they're like, Come on, let's go. You know, it's it's fourth down now. Um we just stopped and made the tackle, you made the tackle, like, let's go. And then I wasn't moving. And so my coach came up to me and he was trying to talk to me. I had my mouth guard still in my mouth, my chin straps slid up over my mouth, and I was trying to talk to him. Uh wasn't going so well. And you know, it was the can you feel this? Can you feel that? One of my teammates could hear him. I don't know why my coach couldn't, but uh he was like, you know, he said he can't feel anything. And so, you know, that's then it kind of got a little more serious for me, but uh, I still wasn't panicking, I was just laying on the field, just answering the questions to the best of my ability. My brother was a coach, so he was on the sideline. My dad, who's um in the stands, obviously, they're both on the fire department, so they know what they're doing. My brother's an EMT, and so they were kind of leading the way. Um, and that really helped me stay calm, just having those guys there. Obviously, my brother was one of the biggest biggest influences kind of during that time and at the first hospital, just like keeping me calm. Um, he did such such a good job at that. Wow. But uh no, I was just answering their questions. Um and then uh I ended up taking the stretcher to the field. I uh got on the stretcher, went to the ambulance, uh, and that's when my coaches started coming up to me. That's the first time I got teary-eyed, just seeing all their worried faces kind of got to me.

SPEAKER_03 4:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 4:57

When was this turn? Like how long ago was this? Or do you remember the date that this happened?

SPEAKER_04 5:01

Yeah, so it's September 8th, 2017. 2017. Yep. So four and a half years ago. Four and a half years ago. It'll be five years ago in September.

SPEAKER_01 5:10

Yep. Nice. I find it interesting how much how vivid you remember like the details to that day, like the how they were driving and that they were up and like four days into the high school and things like that. But I also find it pretty inspiring, like who you are today and where you are today. So, like, help our listeners know what's a day in the life for you now. Like, you took us four and a half years ago on that day. Talk a little bit about who you are today. What do you do now?

SPEAKER_04 5:38

So, right now, obviously, my I'm finishing up college, and so a typical day in the life at college is you know, get up in the morning, go to class. Being a senior is a little different than being an underclassman, so I don't have many classes. Uh, so either hanging out with my friends, kind of just in a senior hangout spot, um, or doing homework and then um, yeah, I mean, not really exciting this semester because I'm almost done, so I don't really have a whole lot to do. So it's mainly doing a little bit of homework and then hanging out with friends. Um a big thing that I'm doing right now is my senior design project. And that takes a lot of my time. Um, but other than that, when I graduate, it'll be getting up at the morning, it'll be going to work, getting back, and then whatever I decide to do after that. I don't know where life will take me after this.

SPEAKER_01 6:31

So the other thing you described was C4 and C5. So I don't, for our listeners, again, what does that mean? What what broke and then what changed because of that injury? Okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 6:40

So I broke my C5, C6 vertebrae. So the cervical level injury, I broke my neck. Okay. Um, what happened was when he when I made the tackle and he kind of kneaded my head and it snapped sideways, the C5 vertebrae kind of just fractured kind of everywhere. And those bone fragments were pushed into my spinal cord. Wow. Uh and that is what caused like the bleeding, and then ultimately like a bruise, and that is my injury. And so the surgery was kind of taking those bones out and then kind of making a paste, making a new bone, putting in the rods and screws, and then um yeah, fusing um, fusing it up. So right now I have no use of my body, kind of below my breastbone. Um, my arms work, my biceps work, but my triceps don't, so I can't like straight my arm and then my hands don't work is probably the biggest thing that affects my injury.

SPEAKER_02 7:40

I remember that day, obviously. The whole town of hills and surrounding towns will remember that day forever. Um, I that in talking with your mom, and when you were on the way in the hot in the ambulance on the way to the hospital and you got to the hospital, I remember a literal uproar of prayer. Like you could feel it in the entire town because everybody was praying for there to like for this not to happen, right? Like, please, Lord, let Trenton come out of this, let Trent Trent stand again. Let all those prayers were for you to be healed, miraculously healed. And when you're at the hospital and all those prayers are happening and that prayer is not being answered, go through that with me a little bit.

SPEAKER_04 8:30

Well, first off, there was never not like 40 people in the hospital visiting me. And so just that whole aspect of like community and never being alone. Nice, like always just that feeling of like people caring for you and like just being there for you. Um, that was like the biggest thing for me in the hospital. Obviously, you know, people are praying for the paralysis not to happen or for the surgery to go well and stuff like that. And you know, obviously that is prayers not answered, but then you can look at it the other way and just look at the support that the community brought, and maybe not just the surrounding community, but it can be uh like the social media aspect and like how other people who don't know me saw like the faith and our community's prayers and all that, and then they decided to like start praying for me, and it was just the whole um prayer warrior thing. Um I was never big on that and really believe in like the prayer warrior thing. I don't want to say I didn't believe in it, but I never really understood it until I was on the receiving end. And then going through that, I know like that was the reason I was so calm through all of it. It was just the thousands and thousands of prayers like every single day coming my way.

SPEAKER_02 9:52

Your Facebook, I mean, there was a you know, your it's still going. 20,000 followers, it just escalated to people all over the world that were tuning in. And the news coverage, I mean, Sioux Falls, Kevaland, they they were over there many times. We actually made the news, which was funny because our our kids made a big, huge piece of plywood. I think you have it in your garage still or something.

SPEAKER_04 10:13

Probably.

SPEAKER_02 10:14

That was Trenton Strong. I mean, our community made there's an actual logo for Trenton that was passed all over. It's still hanging up in people's windows in our in our little small community. So um tell me, when you were in the hospital, who, if not a couple, were the the I guess the the friends and the family that came to visit you that that hit it really home with you?

SPEAKER_04 10:41

Um, I would say my brothers were probably the biggest ones, just seeing them. Um I don't know. It just made me feel kind of safe and like calm. Like I said, my my middle brother was the one that was there. He was a coach um on my team.

SPEAKER_02 11:00

This is Dalton. Dalton, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 11:03

And he's an EMT, so he knows how to handle that kind of stuff. So when I was in Wyndham, I got out of the CT scan, and that's when they like, you broke your neck, um, you're gonna have to go get surgery in Sioux Falls. There's a helicopter on the way, and I got out, and then I saw my family and like more people from the game, and that's when the emotions really hit because that's when I realized that it was really serious, and so Dalton was just like I remember I was like crying and he was just like looking at me, just like laughing. He's like, It's gonna be okay. He's like, You're gonna be fine, and then yeah, just he was like that the whole way through Sioux Falls, and he's just always been that rock. Same with Colton. I mean, those guys, I'm their little brother, you know, and it was probably hard for them to see it, but they never really showed that, and that really helped me a lot.

SPEAKER_02 11:59

Yeah. So you had to go through some really hard, hard therapy. We're talking physical therapy, and you went to some of the best, best places here in the US. So explain that, what that was like for you.

SPEAKER_04 12:12

Yeah, so physical therapy in a wheelchair can look a lot different. You know, it's not lifting 300 pounds, it's not deadlifting, but it's uh learning how to live in a wheelchair with what I have now. And so I lost, you know, 80, 90% of the muscles that I had before this. I lost 40 to 45 pounds of muscle. Um, I didn't have the use of my legs or my abs or my back or anything like that. And so it's how do I go through life with what I have? And that was like the focus of the physical therapy was learning how to transfer into bed, how to put on my shoes, how to feed myself, how to um, yeah, anything. Seriously, it was it was everything, and it it was frustrating and it took a long time, and it's still going today. I mean, I'm still learning how to do stuff, there's still stuff I can't do, um, but it's stuff I know I'll be able to do. Nice.

SPEAKER_01 13:10

So I I find myself like embodying your story, like I'm listening to you and I'm trying to like put myself in your uh in your shoes, and I think about how if facing that scenario, like what I'm curious about is when did your faith start carrying you through? And how long was it like the faith of other people? Because like I'm wondering, like, when did the Holy Spirit begin to like speak to you? Because in the midst of all that calamity and chaos, you know, again, you probably are not in a place where you're like hearing from God to say, Trent, it's okay. I have a purpose for this, this is gonna work out for good, trust me. And I'm just curious, like, when did like the Holy Spirit begin to speak to you and give you the purpose behind this event? And how long was it that other people's like faith was carrying you through?

SPEAKER_04 14:02

I would say for the first good, honestly, probably two years, it was just relying on other people's faith just to get me through this and other people's prayers. I remember one time though, I was in Avera, so I was in um the hospital I had surgery in. I was probably in there for maybe a week and a half at this point. And everyone who knows me knows I love my sleep, and I just could not sleep. Same. And it just too many lights and like noises of the hospital, and I just could not fall asleep. And so I just I prayed, prayed to God. I was like, God, just help me sleep. I was like, please, I was like, just tonight, I was like, just help me get some good sleep. And as soon as I was done like with that prayer, I just instantly felt tired, and then I woke up the next morning. And that was like the first time that I knew that I could like talk to God and like pray. And he was listening. And so that was that was the first time that I really knew that he was with me through all this. But yeah, probably for the first two years though, I did like rely on other people's faith kind of to get me through this. That's powerful.

SPEAKER_02 15:10

Trent and I've had I've I've talked to a couple other quadriplegics, um, paraplegics, and uh you explained to me what that means because for somebody who is not, and that's not the world I live in, I didn't even know. So, can you just to give those an explanation of what that even means, the definition?

SPEAKER_04 15:29

Yeah, and I mean I didn't know before I was injured either. So um so kind of the paraplegic, quadriplegic, paraplegic. So if you think of like your four limbs, your arms and your legs, a paraplegic just has two limbs affected, and so like the legs. Quadriplegic is all four limbs. So my arms are affected because like my hands don't work, my triceps don't work, and obviously my legs don't work. And so that would be like the kind of the difference between quadriplegic and paraplegic. And there are some quadriplegics who can still walk, it's called an incomplete injury, and so some people break their neck and they can still walk. It's not the same as it was before, but that would still be like a quadriplegic because it's still affected in some way. So it's a really confusing line.

SPEAKER_02 16:15

You know, I um since this has happened to you and since you guys have started your ministry, your nonprofit, which is called Game Plan for Hope. Um, I I've learned so much when it comes to the difference in all of this this stuff and what you can do and what you can't do, and actually how um how it happens a lot. It happens a lot more than people think when it comes to injuries and football injuries or snowmobile injury. Um there's there's a lot of people that are landing in wheelchairs just due to a really freak accident. And so what can you tell a family out there that is going through something? And because it's so sudden. It's like you literally within a second this happened to you. And so your family has wrapped their arms around you and the communities wrapped their their arms around your whole entire family. But what can you tell somebody who may be going through this for the very first time?

SPEAKER_04 17:18

My biggest thing that I've learned through this is just to take it day by day. I mean, when I think back to when I was in the hospital, there's no way I would have thought that I would be at where I'm at right now. And I know that there's still so much more for me. And so you can't just look into the future and think that's gonna happen right away. And so the biggest thing that I would say is just take it one day at a time. I mean, have your faith and stay anchored, but just take it one day at a time. Don't don't rush into things, don't expect things to happen when that's miles down the road. Um yeah, I I look at families that are nonprofit as helped. And I mean, I think that I have a good, you know, the grass is always greener. And I have talked to um other people in my situation when we're in the hospital, and I I just try to tell them like you're gonna be okay, like you're gonna be so much better than you are right now. This is like the lowest of your low. You know, you're so fragile and you can do nothing for yourself, but it's not always gonna be like that. Um, that's definitely what I would say to myself if I could go back and like talk to myself.

SPEAKER_02 18:32

Yeah. I mean, you've learned so many valuable lessons through all of this. Um, even the transfer, when you have to transfer from your bed into your wheelchair or your wheelchair into your bed, the amount of energy and just it it takes a lot. And so when that happened to you, I started to go through in my head like I get to stand up every single morning and I get to walk to the bathroom and I get to reach for a glass. And so all these little teeny things that you don't think about until something really tragic happens to someone you love. Do you actually go through that? And so having a grateful heart is what it sounds like to what you're explaining, is like to continue to have a grateful heart, to not feel sorry for yourself, because that's when you can really hit the low. You know, that's when you can get to a really bad place if you do not continue to take it day by day, like you're explaining. So, did you ever have those moments though, in the very beginning?

SPEAKER_04 19:29

I mean, I still get like really frustrated, obviously.

SPEAKER_01 19:35

You're human.

SPEAKER_04 19:37

Um, I mean, something so simple as like dropping something on the ground, and then I have to go pick it up, or yeah, just anything like that. Makes me really frustrated. And then I try to just think back to like there are there are others who obviously don't even have as good as I do, you know. Yeah. I think a lot. Like, if only my hands worked, I'm like, yeah, I'm okay with being in a wheelchair as long as my hands worked. I mean, but I'm sure there's people who are in a wheelchair and only the legs don't work. And you know, it's just like I said, it's the grass is always greener, it's perspective. Um and so just trying to keep the man that mentality of perspective.

SPEAKER_02 20:20

Your mom, uh, when you were out in therapy, you were in Colorado, correct? What was the name of it?

SPEAKER_04 20:25

Craig Hospital in Denver.

SPEAKER_02 20:26

In Denver, yeah. And it the the care and the help there are was tremendous.

SPEAKER_04 20:31

Yeah, I think it's like a top 10 rehab hospital in the nation for like the last 30 years or something like that.

SPEAKER_02 20:36

And there's different units. So correct me if I'm wrong, but you were in a unit and then there were there was another unit where they had traumatic brain injury. And I recall a story of you going into that unit, and you saw what could have happened if your injury was just one more vertebrae up.

SPEAKER_04 20:59

Yeah, I mean, injuries are really different, like the the whole brain injury to kind of spinal cord injury. But yeah, they are all so close together and just like one vertebrae up can really affect a lot of things. And the same with like the the traumatic brain injury, because those injuries are so complex. Um, our nonprofit help helps people with that a lot. Um and they are, they're really difficult to go through, not only on the person, but on the family members and on the caretakers. And that is the thing that probably makes me look back or look into my own life and just really notice how lucky I am to not be in that situation. Maybe not lucky, but um I'm just grateful for kind of the situation I'm in compared to some other people.

SPEAKER_01 21:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 21:59

It's powerful.

SPEAKER_01 22:00

You know, I think about going through hard stuff, witnessing people go through hard stuff, going through my own challenges and struggles, and I think about the importance of having a good attitude, you know, and that's one thing that I'm impressed with right now, just hearing you talk about it and just like the positive mindset that you're keeping even in it today. The other thing I think about when I'm listening here is like, you know, I was asking you earlier about the spirit and like where's God in it and how did God show up for you and how's God still showing up for you? And one of the things I think about, Trent, is when things happen to me, I say that there's what I see, and then what and then there's what God's doing, right? And so there's like this physical world that people see where this your physical disability, whether it's your, you know, your household makeup, right? Because your dad's not around, or there's a divorce in your home, or whatever. Like, and there's like what people see or what happened to me, and then there's what God's doing with it. You know, and so when I hear you have this like life today of having a nonprofit ministry and being able to help people, it's really inspiring to see what God has done with what happened. And so I just offer that like a reminder to you as you continue to go through tomorrow and the day after and the day after and others, but like speak to that, like how this event has kind of turned from a one event to like a bigger thing that is giving God glory in and how how do you how what is your experience with that?

SPEAKER_04 23:30

Um it's it's uh like you said I and I mentioned earlier I I do do ministry and I talk with two of my best friends. Um we do kind of talks to youth groups, we just did one to a church, and that's really helped me grow. Um so we talk about our faith kind of as friends. And I was in high school before this happened, and you know, high schoolers don't talk about their faith with each other. And now that we're kind of gone through all this and we've kind of grown grown out of that, and we do talk about faith with each other. Um, we share podcasts with each other, and we I mean we don't talk about it all the time, but it's not something that we're afraid of doing anymore. And so that's something that's really changed is just not being afraid to show my faith to my friends. Um that is definitely where I've grown the most. Um, another thing I always say is sometimes you don't know what it's like to have faith until faith is all you have left. Come on. Um I yeah, I mean, my my life completely changed. I kind of lost all the things I was good at. I was athletic before, I kind of lost all that. I mean, I go through college and I still think about you know, what would my life be like in college if I wasn't in a wheelchair? Um I see uh my friends and family golf all summer and I love doing that, all that kind of stuff. Um but it's just uh yeah, no, that's really good.

SPEAKER_01 24:59

And you you remind me of something else in my spirit too. And a couple things. One is these events that happen to us in our lives bring us closer to God, don't they? Like it's the hard stuff that is the catalyst for like the building the relationship to grow draw closer to God. And like for those of us who do believe, like that's the purpose. Like we're here to get to know ourselves, find ourselves, and then get grow closer to God. And I think about how people will pray for courage, and then God provides you an opportunity to be courageous. People will pray that my family would be closer and more tight-knit, and then what happens is your family is faced with a challenge that brings you together and makes you tight-knit. Absolutely. And so, like, there is that there, that that kind of that spiritual eyesight that you recognize that these events were not, you know, they were for me, right? They they did they didn't destroy me, they develop me and those types of things. But the other thing that I in my spirit when you're talking is I remind people, I say, it's easy to put God first when all you got is God left, right? When when things are stripped away and all you got is your faith, it's easy to turn to God. But my encouragement is to keep God first, right? When God returns back onto you the things that were once gone and they start returning, like your friends or your family or your mobility, keeping God first, because when all you got is God left, it is easy to hold on to that faith. And the the last caution is to recognize that sometimes it does get worse before it gets better, right? So there's not just all of a sudden smooth selling. It's gonna be bumpy, it's gonna stay bumpy, but like these events that bring us closer in our faith allows for us to like develop a stronger relationship with God. And then now, no matter what how big the problem is, God is bigger than that.

SPEAKER_04 26:52

Yeah, I couldn't agree more.

SPEAKER_02 26:55

Trend, tell me who's one you've met a lot of really incredible people through this process, uh, and and you've been to a couple camps and you've um had opportunities, obviously, that you would not have otherwise. So tell me a little bit about some of the greatest experiences you've had. And uh I know you've met a couple famous people in certain situations. So if you could just share a little bit about that.

SPEAKER_04 27:17

Yeah, kind of one of the good things about your story getting huge is uh you get a lot of recognition. Um, and so I had when I was in the hospital, I had a bunch of NFL players and coaches like sending videos and stuff to me. Um, when I was out in Denver at Craig, Peyton Manning called me when I was in the hospital room, and so just stuff like that was um beyond cool. But then obviously it goes beyond that to like I was getting invited to go to like football games and tour stadiums and stuff like that, and so that stuff was really cool. Um, actually, when I first got back from Craig, uh the Vikings invite invited me to go up to um a game in practice, and so my family went up there on a Saturday. We kind of watched the pregame practice. I met all the players, got stuff signed, and then we were on the field before the game uh for the Vikings game. And so that was, I don't know if I can top that. So that was one of the coolest things that has happened out of this.

SPEAKER_02 28:24

Yeah, yeah. I um it it was fun to watch when you guys got to go to that because you had a big pretty big smile on your face. Definitely. I love it. Um, so there's a lot of really great stories out there. I have attended a couple conferences where there um there's a beautiful lady who speaks all over the world too. And of course I'm gonna blink on her name, but um, are there any current like paraplegics or quad quad I always say that word wrong? Quadriplegic. Thank you, Trenton. Um, that you inspire, like that have inspired you to be this Trenton that you're Trenton strong. Yeah, that you're gonna continue. So can you give me an example of any one story?

SPEAKER_04 29:05

Um, just like the whole um game plan for hope thing. I mean, it really hits home when there's a kid or a person in our area who our family is helping. And I mean, my I get asked to like go talk to them and just kind of give them motivation and an outlook on what to expect and just to just to be there and tell them that it's gonna be okay and kind of give them um a path to follow and to look forward to. Um, and so that's probably the thing that I enjoy the most and that kind of brings me joy is helping others when I can. Um But I don't I can't really think of one that I kind of have taken inspiration from.

SPEAKER_02 29:55

I did some research before we met, and I was reading a lot of stories about other people, and my heart was touched to over and over and over from stories of people on riding horseback and falling off and hitting their neck on the sidewalk. I mean, just it almost every single story, it's a split second, you know. So I I could go on and on after reading some of these, but um Yeah, it happens more often than you think, that's for sure. Yeah, yeah. So uh game plan for hope. I I love to hear about what you guys are doing, and I get to hear about it often with your mother. But if you could explain to me a little bit about what that ministry is and what your guys' ultimate goal is.

SPEAKER_04 30:39

So it kind of started off when I was in the hospital. Um, like I said, my story got really big, and so everyone wanted to help in any way they could. Um, so people were sending us all kinds of things, and some of them were helpful, but there's just too many things. Um, a lot of it I couldn't use, it just wasn't useful to me. And so my parents kind of started to get the idea that we needed to pay it forward, and so they ended up starting Game Plan for Hope with another another family in our community um who lost a son to cancer. And so, what game plan for hope is now, uh obviously we still give away equipment and accept donations and stuff like that, but we're uh we are like liaisons. There you go. That's the word I was looking for. Yeah, we are we're there for families who need help, and it's not just spinal cord injuries, it's all it's anything uh life-changing. And we are there emotionally, we are there to kind of guide you through insurance and where to go to the hospital and anything like that. Well, we just help those families in any way we can. The transition. The transition, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 31:48

There's um, there's so much that in, I mean, because there's the stuff, right? But what I heard you say was emotional. And that probably is the hardest, right? Like to really navigate and adjust to what you're emotionally going through. And so what I love about what you're doing at Game Plan for Hope is that it is Christian-based. Therefore, you are openly sharing your faith with every single family who may not have faith. Um, so being able to spread God's word and hope through this ministry is it's pretty outstanding.

SPEAKER_04 32:22

Yeah, just sharing what really helped me and my family get through it. My mom's really good at reaching out to those families and um sharing what helped her and what helped me. And then obviously for the other family too, who lost their son to cancer, they help families um who have no idea how to go through this, just the emotional side of it and the faith side of it and what helped them.

SPEAKER_02 32:47

Um I'm excited. I um for future episodes, uh make sure to stay tuned because Heather will, the mom, she will be speaking. Yep, she'll be speaking on this podcast and telling her story too. So um one other question I have for you is you're going to college right now for mechanical engineering. And when it comes to uh equipment, adaptive equipment, you have a dream, kind of, is maybe like to to this innovative way of making things a little bit more easy.

SPEAKER_04 33:21

Yeah, I mean, just having that whole engineering mindset. And I think being in a wheelchair, I just think of so many things that would just help me out and make things easier every day. And um yeah, the equipment side of it is really, really fascinating. I kind of wish that STSU had the uh biomedical engineering because that's just a really cool thing. And I feel like I have uh an insight that a lot of people don't building those things of equipment. And so um, yeah, that would be a really cool job to get, but um uh we don't really have that around here. It's just not a big enough screen. I was gonna say yes. Yes, yes, yes, that's yeah.

SPEAKER_02 34:05

Yeah, this this right now could be the beginning of you saying, I want this to happen, and someone hears it, and you're gonna get a phone call, Trent.

SPEAKER_01 34:13

I'll tell you what. Here here's what here's another thing in my spirit, and I I just think about this. I'm a person who believes in like change and leadership and influence, and like you're embodying all three things. And I think about like again, looking at you through my spiritual eyes, it's like there are no coincidences in life. There's only purpose and destiny. And we know that the Lord doesn't put on us more than we could bear. Now, for someone else to go through what you went through, it might be more than what they could bear. But God knew that Trenton Bass could handle this event and this incident. And I think about how many positive, not only personal experiences that you've had since the incident that God has allowed to happen, but just like all of the encouragement and blessing and like glory that's being given onto like the power of God in life. And so, even in my own background, I think about being done competing as a collegiate hurdler. I have so much more fulfillment talking to people about hurdling life than I ever would have been being an Olympic hurdler. And so, like, I know some days I heard you say, like, would it be nice to have been playing football or to be doing golf, but none of that compares to like the glory that is being manifested from the way you're carrying what has happened with you and how you give that glory to God.

SPEAKER_04 35:30

Yeah, kind of to build off that, I've um I've always said that, you know, if I could go back and not play football, um, I think I would probably be in the situation from another type of accident. I just think that it was a god thing. And then I also go look back and I look at my teammates and I just think of all of those guys, and I don't know how they would have handled it, handled it, and I don't know if it would have been as good as I handled it. So then I think back to them and I'm just glad that it was me and like the way I handled it and the support that I had because I don't know if they would have had that. And so that really makes me um glad that it was me in that sense.

SPEAKER_01 36:09

Yeah, you're living your destiny, bro. I can see it, it's all over you, you know. And you we just when we choose to believe that we're able to have peace in this thing called life. Like when we when we uh believe that the things that happened to us were for us and that we can use those things to glorify God.

SPEAKER_04 36:26

Yeah, I definitely would not be here um if I wasn't hurt out of high school. It's sharing my faith on a podcast. Praise God.

SPEAKER_02 36:34

Um I have so a couple other friends of mine that are paraplegics. I've asked them this very blunt question because I I think in our society we tiptoe around um, you know, being hand handicapped and all the different terminology and all the different things. And I don't want to offend you if I were to help you. And how do I help you? How do I not help you? What is, you know, and um they they shared with me that even like taking off the coat, like someone wants to take off, I can take off my own coat. You know, people step in and want to help because they that's what they want to do. Like they they don't know the boundary. And so I'd do you have any stories about that or advice?

SPEAKER_04 37:09

Um, I can just say my thoughts on it. Obviously, everyone is really different. I'm super open about my injury and I accept help. Um, some people are not like that, and they just just have a bad attitude in general. Um but what I would say, the thing that maybe doesn't bother me, but I think that is kind of there's like a taboo around it that I disagree with, you know, when there's a kid in a restaurant and they're like pointing at me and like asking why he's in a wheelchair, and then the parent just goes, like, don't like talk to him or like don't ask him about that. I think that's kind of where it begins, is like the kind of seeing people as like different. Um, you know, they're just curious, like let them ask a question. I have no problem telling them like what happened that I was hurt or whatever. Um, so that's where I kind of think that the whole separation between um like helping people and like just the the weird taboo emotional uh separation between like people helping people in wheelchairs and then yeah.

SPEAKER_02 38:20

I love that perspective. The the what you just did with the correlation of a child and as a parent and us being like, don't point, don't like like you know that that's beautiful. Thank you for sharing that because I hope more people will actually take that take that to heart and ask the questions. But again, there are those angry individuals out there who, like you said, that don't take it as nicely.

SPEAKER_04 38:43

Yeah, just just be genuine and try don't ask personal questions right away, just ask if there's anything you can do to help. Um, that would probably be the biggest thing because I do need help doing some things in public. Um so asking for help is sometimes difficult. And so if you can help someone and you see that they're in need of help, just ask.

SPEAKER_02 39:03

And if and if they do get mad at you, don't get offended. Yeah. They just have an angry spirit. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 39:08

Well, there's such a blessing in that though, too, to ask for help. You know, and I think I know with with um the podcast, we're hoping to draw people out who are going through hard stuff that they would open up and ask for help. You know, that's what humility is, is that that willingness to ask for help, that willingness to receive it, and the recognition that that you need some of it. And when we humble ourselves to be open to that, I believe on the other side of humility is exactly what you're praying for.

SPEAKER_04 39:38

So that was the biggest thing. One of the biggest things I had to get over was asking for help. Yeah. I mean, I obviously came from being really independent and being a strong athlete in high school to buff.

SPEAKER_02 39:52

Yeah, he was very buff. I do have to say, Trenton, because we have to close up here in just a second, but two days prior to your accident, you were walking away from me, and I looked at your mom and I'm like, he has the best like waddle when he walks. Like he had this, like you had a swagger about you. And it was the true athlete. Like Trenton was a true athlete and so. Tea Breezy. It was so, it was so fun to watch you. But I um I want to ask in closing, just you obviously have dreams of like marriage, children. Is there anyone in your life right now?

SPEAKER_04 40:26

There's not.

SPEAKER_02 40:26

There's not. Single. Single. Hello. Any shout out. Um I am excited to watch the win marriage and children and just to watch you develop into your career and any of that.

SPEAKER_04 40:41

Yeah, that is where the biggest thing of hope and like faith comes from right now. Um, or comes from, because looking into that is like the biggest hurdle and challenge I'll have in my life after college is like marriage and then eventually kids and just being a father and what that'll look like is really daunting. And um, so yeah, looking forward to it. But it's also a huge task that'll be in the future.

SPEAKER_02 41:06

So and I do remember you saying day by day. Day by day. Day by day.

SPEAKER_04 41:10

Right. Don't look don't look forward to it yet.

SPEAKER_02 41:12

God will bring, God will bring it to you. Well, thank you so much. This has been an honor to to hear your story and absolutely. Um, in our show notes and everything, we'll have ways that they can uh reach your nonprofit and reach out to you if need be. So thank you.

SPEAKER_04 41:26

Absolutely. Yep.